In The Shadows
by darkponDJ
Summary: Twilight and her friends meet a new friend who needs their help more than she realizes. I own nothing except the OC. Been sitting on this one for a few day. Hope you guys enjoy. I'll be working to make it awesome. Please review.
1. Prologue

Darkness fell over Ponyville and stars twinkled overhead. In the light of the full moon the town seemed to glow silvery. In particular the castle that towered like it was presiding over the town. Within the beautiful castle, Twilight tossed and turned.

/

The sun rose on a collection of small mud brick houses. As the golden light poured over their homes, ponies emerged and began to go about their day. Among these ponies was an earthpony stallion with a long braided cyan mane and yellow body. And he worked on at a grindstone grinding dried herbs, a figure peeked across a building.

Silently, the unseen figure crept closer and closer towards the stallion till it was looming right behind him. With a small leap, the figure grasped him round the shoulders whilst giving out a shout. The stallion let out a cry of surprise and stumbled backwards, finding himself staring up in the crystalline blue and violet eyes of an earthpony mare with a large spiked white and violet mane.

He sighed exasperatedly as he got up from the ground and shot a glare at the mare. "And what was that for?" He demanded as he straightened his work.

"Oh come on." The mare answered. "You were asking for it."

The stallion glared at her once more. "Is there something you want?"

"Actually I was coming to ask if you'd like to join me in the forest." The mare replied. "I'm out of herbs and I wanted to gather more."

"The meadows have a good supply of herbs."

"But the forest herbs are more robust." The mare's eyes twinkled a little merrily. "So...care to accompany me?"

"I'd love to." He said. "But I'm a little busy. Remember, I'm still in training."

"Well alright then." She said as she trotted off. "I'll grab some extra for you. Bye!"

"Bye!" He answered with a smile. As he watched her disappear, uneasiness prickled in his stomach.

/

The shadows were long in the forest but the mare strode through without hesitation. Resting on either side her back were two woven baskets partially filled with various plants. as she trotted through the forest a rustle caught her attention.

Pausing she perked her ears up. When no other sounds sound she turned back the bush she'd been poking at. A twig snapped and she once more turned her attention to the forest. Carefully she trotted towards a nearby bush and peered in.

In the deep shadows of the bush a pair of glowing reds eyes appeared and in a sudden movement something lept out at her. Rearing back to escape the sudden assault, the unrecognisable thing tackled her her the face and sent her collapsing into a nearby bush clutching her face.

/

The stallion was inconsolable. He stood in front of a large crystalline orb wrapped in what appeared to be a silvery white root. he was covered in cuts, scrapes and some minor burns but didn't to care or notice. his focus was entirely on the huge orb. His eyes were wet with tears and trails in the grim covering his face showed where previous tears had run.

Not far away stood a second pony. An older earthpony mare also covered in minor scrapes, cuts and burns. Clasped in her foreleg was a long carved staff. The orb itself was white and pulsed with light. deep within the orb a barely perceived shadow could be seen.

"It's my fault." The stallion finally said, remorse and self loathing in his voice. "If I'd just been with her..."

"The blame lies not upon your shoulders." The older mare interrupted. "Neither does it lie upon her." She said as she nodded towards the orb.

She then raised her staff and brought it down with a bang. A deep groan was heard and the stallion jumped back as the earth split open. The root pulled the orb down the crack and with another moan the crack shut, leaving no evidence that it had ever been there. The stallion stared at the spot where the orb had vanished morsley.

"But if I had been there..." He said quietly.

"There was nothing you or anypony could've done." The mare said quietly. "What's done is done. There is nothing we can do but have faith in the future."

/

Darkness. That was all she saw. Pure black. Heavy and oppressive, with waves of malicious intent surrounding her. Twilight's ears twitched when a soft sound reached them. It was a soft voice. weak and wavering. Like there was somepony else out there in the blackness.

"Hello?" Twilight said quietly, not daring to speak any louder.

"Help me." The voice cried out. "Somepony help me."

Then with a jump Twilight woke up.


	2. Dreams and Visions

The shadows writhed and twisted around Twilight. she couldn't see them, but she knew the darkness was made of something else. Something dark and destructive. she couldn't move a muscle and she could feel hot tears stream down her face.

"Help me." the weak broken voice called. "Please! someone help me."

"Hello?" twilight squeaked as loud as she dared. "Is somepony out there"

"Please help me. Please help me."

Then with a jerk Twilight's eyes snapped open to her still dark bedroom.

/

"Cider milady?" Spike offered as he held up a bottle of vintage apple cider.

"Why thank you Spike dearest." Rarity said and held out her glass for the dragon to fill.

Spike and Rarity sat at a candlelit table with a lovely spread. Not too far away was the sound of a violin playing a romantic tune. Spike himself was taller with gorgeous purple scales and an emerald green ridge of spikes. Rarity was dressed in a fine silk dress decorated with jewels and a lovely mane do with gems braided in.

"Oh Spike." Rarity sighed after delicately sipping her cider. "So what did you wish to ask?"

Spike dabbed his mouth with a napkin before kneeling in front of Rarity and presenting her with a small box. The unicorn levitated the box and opened it to reveal a beautiful ring.

"If you would like Rarity." Spike said as she stared at the ring. "I would be very happy if you would be more than my special somepony."

"Oh Spike!" Rarity cried out as she lept into the dragon's arms.

"Oh Rarity." Spike replied.

"Oh Spike."

"Yes Rarity."

"Wake up."

"What?"

Before anything more could be said, Spike experienced a sort of sudden almost disembodied snap into awareness. Blinking open his eyes he found himself staring up at the darkened ceiling in his normal form. Spike then turned to the larger bed in the room and found it was empty, the blankets tossed and rumpled.

Letting out a sigh for his lost dream, Spike pushed himself out of bed and tromped out of the room. Unlike their previous home in the library, this castle was much larger. When Tirek had fried the library, there hadn't been time for Twilight to clear out their personal stuff. All she could do at the time was save Owlowiscious before getting out of there. Fortunately, before they could even think about their lost home, the tree made them a bigger and cooler home.

Even in the dark hallway, Spike had no problem walking to his destination. Their new library was larger than their old one. To Twilight's delight the books that had been destroyed during the battle were restored along with a few extras. Spike was also delighted to find that his comic book collection, which had also gone up in smoke, was restored along with a few more, some of them the more rare editions.

Poking his head through the large open door to the library, Spike was unsurprised to find Twilight sitting at the table, a candle illuminating the book in front of her. Perched on a perch above was Owlowiscious looking very concerned. Twilight herself was hunched over the book and looked to be focused on the contents, but Spike knew better. Twilight's eyes were low lidded and there were dark shadows under them. Her mane was disheveled and she looked very much like she did back when her fears got the better of her and Ponyville had to be saved by Princess Celestia (Lesson Zero) only she looked heavier and much more tired.

"You had the nightmare again, didn't you?" Twilight let out a startled gasp as she jerked back, startled at the sudden voice in the quiet.

Spotting Spike in the door she sighed. "Sorry to wake you Spike."

"It's almost three o'clock. This must be some kind of record."

"Actually I was up at twelve." Twilight said bashfully as she rubbed the back of her neck.

Spike looked at her with a deadpan expression. The little dragon then entered the room and stood beside Twilight.

"It was the nightmare again, wasn't it?"

There was a long silence before Twilight finally nodded slowly and quietly. As he looked into her eyes he saw that her nerves were almost shot. Without a word he stood up and left the room. After awhile he returned with a tray in his claws. Sitting on the tray was a large ceramic pot and two matching mugs. Setting the tray on the table, Twilight watched as the little dragon poured a steaming golden liquid into one of the mugs before moving on to the other. Placing the pot back on the tray he handed one mug to her before picking up the other for himself.

Lifting the mug with her magic Twilight took a sip of the sweet warm cider and let out a sigh while simultaneously releasing some of the tension in her body.

"Thank you Spike. I needed that."

"Hey, what are friends for?" He said with a smile. Before sipping his own mug of cider.

Twilight smiled back. After an hour of sipping cider and reading, Twilight turned in time to stop Spike's head from dropping into his third mug of cider.

"If you want, you can go back to bed." She said worriedly. "I'm fine on my own."

Spike shook his head and let out a yawn. "No way." He said exhaustion evident in his voice. "What kind of friend would I be if I left you all by yourself. Anyways, I'm not tired at all."

\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\

The morning started out like any other morning for Applejack. The orange earthpony awoke before the sun peeked over the horizon and began apple bucking extra early after a hearty breakfast. Today was market day and she and Big Mac were going to set up a stand later that morning. After loading the wagon, Applejack and Big Mac left for market.

From their stand in the square, Applejack could Twilight's new castle as it towered over the small town. Even after less than a month had passed since the battle with Tirek, Applejack still couldn't believe what had happened. It still felt a little unreal.

A sudden thought occur as Applejack realized she hadn't seen Twilight for the past couple weeks. Concern etched itself across her face at this thought and Applejack turned to her brother.

"Big Mac." She said as she pulled her apron off. "I'm going ta go see if Twilight's all right then Ah'll be back. Watch the stand till then."

Big Macintosh simply nodded and AJ trotted down the road to the castle. Halfway there a rainbow colored blur registered in the corner of her eye before a cyan and rainbow colored pegasus appeared in front of her forcing her to halt in her tracks.

"Hey Applejack!" Rainbow Dash greeted. "How's it going at market?"

"Jus' fine. An' what about yer weather duties? Aren't ya on the clock."

"Pffft clock shmock. One clear sunny day, ha! I could do that in my sleep. I clocked out early and was practically snoring. So what'cha doing?"

"Visiting Twilight." Applejack replied as she resumed her journey.

Rainbow Dash dropped the last few inches to the ground and began to trot alongside her friend.

"Why?" She asked.

"It's been a couple weeks since Ah' last saw Twilight. Figured it wouldn't hurt to poke in an' make sure everything is okay."

Rainbow Dash trotted in silence as she rolled that around in her head. "You know, now that I think about it, I haven't seen Twilight in a while either."

Applejack's worried expression deepened and she quickened her pace a little. Upon reaching the castle, Applejack began knocking. There was no answer. She knocked again. Still no answer. After the third unanswered knock Rainbow Dash let out a moan of impatience.

"Come on, why aren't they answering?!"

"Be a little patient Rainbow. Maybe they can't hear us."

Rainbow Dash's only response was a grumble and Applejack's worry only increased. After a fifth unanswered knock, Applejack's worry had deepened and Rainbow Dash's patience ran out.

"Argh! I can't take it any more!"

Before Applejack had a chance to stop her, Rainbow Dash shot upwards and into the nearest window. Less than a minute later the front door opened to reveal Rainbow Dash looking rather proud of herself. Applejack said nothing as she trotted in. The first thing she noticed was how dark and quiet it was and Applejack's anxiousness only grew.

"Twilight!" She called out. "It's us, Rainbow Dash and Applejack!"

After trotting through the castle, they found the library door cracked open and a small light flickering. Peeking inside the library, the two saw that many of the books had been pulled off their selves and lay haphazardly around the room. Some even open.

Laying sprawled across a small pile of books using his arm as a pillow was Spike. Draped over his back was a large book that made a semi comfortable blanket for the little dragon and dangling from his claw was a ceramic mug. Sitting on the table was a matching ceramic jug and not far from that was a second mug right next to a book that a bedraggled and drooping Twilight was hunched over.

Trotting as carefully as possible, Applejack approached her friend. Rainbow flew up to the snoring dragon and gave a quick poke to his side. Spike's only response to the touch was to pull the book lower and let out a small mumble.

Reaching Twilight, Applejack softly touched the alicorn's shoulder. "Twi?"

Twilight practically launched herself across the room and up the far side wall with a loud yelp at the sound of Applejack's soft word. At the same time Spike snapped awake, jumping up with a confused unintelligible mumbling that sounded like 'more cider?'

Once she noticed that it was only her friends, Twilight began fly down looking very much abashed. Upon landing, she stumbled slightly but quickly found found her balance.

"Sorry." She apologized. "I didn't see you there."

"We've knocked five times." Rainbow Dash said. Twilight looked surprised then bashful.

"Sorry I didn't hear." She said. Applejack slung her foreleg across her friend's back, drawing her attention to her.

"It's okay sugarcube." She comforted softly. "Rainbow and I were just concerned since we ain't seen you fer a couple weeks. Honey, what's wrong?"

"Twilight's been having nightmares." Spike mumbled from the book pile where he'd sunk back down.

Applejack frowned in concern. "What kind of nightmares?"

Twilight looked uneasy and glanced around the room before turning back to Applejack then trotting back to her seat at the table.

"One nightmare." She finally said. "But every time I go to sleep I have the same nightmare. I'm in darkness. And not just any darkness. It feels alive and it writhes and shifts around me. And I can feel dark maliciousness radiating from the darkness. Like it wants to tear me, and everything I love, apart. And off in the distance I can hear a voice calling for help, but I'm too scared to move. And then I wake up."

Twilight stopped and the room was filled with silence as the two friends digested this.

"At first I didn't have much of a problem with it since I'm no stranger to all night study sessions. But that doesn't mean I don't get a good night's sleep when I can. I've barely been able to sleep for these past two weeks because I'm too afraid to close my eyes. And whenever I do I'm in the darkness again."

As Twilight spoke, her voice grew more and more hysterical till she was laying on the floor clutching her head looking on the brink of either tears or insanity. Or possibly both. Rainbow Dash and Applejack looked at each other, not sure how to handle this situation before turning to Spike who only stared up at the nearest pony, Rainbow Dash, before his eyes began to droop. Rainbow Dash turned back to AJ who looked uneasy before taking a deep breath and leaning down to Twilight and placing a hoof on her shoulder.

Twilight, who had in the few minutes during the silent conversation began rocking and muttering unintelligibly, paused her mutterings upon the contact and looked up at Applejack who simply scooped her into a comforting embrace.

"Hey hey, listen sugarcube. Everything is going to be okay." Twilight relaxed a little at the comforting words.

"Yeah. What about Luna? I'm sure she could help. You know with the dream walking and stuff."

Applejack looked at Rainbow Dash confused, but Twilight sighed with resignation.

"That was one of the first things I tried." When Applejack gave her a confused look, she explained. "It's not very well known due to certain circumstances, but as Princess of the night Princess Luna has the ability to walk into other ponies dreams. She usually uses this method to help ponies, in particular fillies and colts, overcome and understand their nightmares."

Applejack gave a nod of understanding before asking. "Then why ain't ya talking to her bout this?"

Twilight let out another sigh. "As I already said it was one of the first things that came to me. After I read through every dream related book I had and turned up dry, I sent a letter to Princess Luna regarding my plight. The next day she sent me this letter."

Twilight's horn flared with light and she picked a piece of paper up off the table and gave it to Applejack, who released Twilight to hold it in her hooves.

"Dearest Friend, Twilight Sparkle." Applejack began reading aloud. "When I first received your letter detailing your troubles, it grieved me to hear of your pains and I had a desire to ease your woes. However, during the night as you slept, I attempted to enter within your dreams and found myself blocked off. Such a thing has never happened before and it shocked me. Rest assured I will look into what ever transcripts are available to me to see if I can find a solution. Hopefully you will not have to suffer very long and my next correspondence will provide useful information. Signed Princess Luna."

"Seriously?!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed after a long pause following the conclusion of the letter.

Twilight floated the letter out of Applejack's hooves and back onto the table. "Ever since then I've been going through every book I can my hooves on to find the answer. I've been reading, rereading and rerereading just to make sure I didn't miss any details and every time I've come up empty hoofed. At this point I'm reading just to stay out of my dreams."

"Well, maybe it isn't an ordinary dream?" Rainbow Dash suggested casually.

Twilight blinked at Rainbow and stared at the pegasus in thought. Gradually her thinking expression grew into a look of realization.

"Of course!" She exclaimed as she knocked her forehooves together. "A dream vision!"

"A what now?" Applejack asked. Twilight responded by levitating the large book Spike was using as a blanket off the little dragon. Spike let out a slight shiver and curled himself into a ball. Twilight flipped the book open to her desired page and laid it open for the others to see.

"Dream Vision." She clarified for her friends. "It's a mostly generalized term that basically means visions that manifest themselves as dreams. The types of visions can vary, but can generally be found in two categories. Dream messages and prophetic visions. They aren't very common, almost rare, but when they do appear, they mostly appear to powerful unicorns but that does not mean pegasi and earth ponies are out of the running. Starswirl the Bearded and Clover the Clever themselves have had dream visions of their own. They manifested as nightmares they didn't understand, but in the end their dream visions led to discoveries that benefitted ponykind."

Twilight stopped her monologuing and suddenly facehoofed herself. "I should've thought of this earlier. According to records, Clover the Clever, Starswirl the Bearded and a few others all had their dream visions _before_ Celestia and Luna's reign. A majority of recorded dream visions occurred _after_ Nightmare Moon's banishment and during Celestia's Thousand Year Reign. Luna's probably never encountered a dream vision before. Which still begs the question of where they come from."

"Whoa there Nelly." Applejack stepped in, immediately recognizing Twilight's analytical mode starting to kick in. "Ah think that's enough investigating for one day. Why don't you just send Princess Luna your findings and spend the rest of the day relaxing."

Twilight smiled wearily. "Okay Applejack, but I'm still afraid of sleeping."

Applejack thought this over. "Tell you what." She offered. "Once market ends, I'll come back and spend the night with you."

Rainbow Dash's eyes widened. "Hey yeah! I'll come spend the night with you too. In fact, why don't we talk with the other girls and make it a slumber party. No way any nightmare, dream vision or whatever you want to call it will bug you while we're around. I'll even see if I can invite Scootaloo."

"Then Ah suppose Ah should bring Applebloom. Ah heard her and her friends were planning another sleepover anyways. An what better way to keep an eye on them then to invite them to our own slumber party."

"I have nothing against it." Twilight said. "Those three...lively girls will probably help lift my spirits."

"Well then its settled." Applejack said jovially. "A'll bring Applebloom. Rainbow Dash Scootaloo. And Rarity, Sweetie Belle. A'll probably pop in later today to check on you."

"Thanks." Twilight said, looking happier and more hopeful than she had for day's.

"Heck, we might as well bring the pets."

\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\

"So we'll be sleeping over at Twilight's?" Applebloom asked her sister.

Upon returning, Applejack had informed the little filly and both began packing their saddlebags.

"Ayup." Applejack answered. Applebloom grinned.

"That is so awesome!" Applejack cocked her eyebrow at her sister. "Well Ah ain't ever been in a castle before. Ah wonder what it's like?" Paused with a thoughtful look on her face. "An you said Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo will be there too right?"

"Uh, yeah?" Applejack answered, not sure she liked where this was headed. Applebloom's smile broadened with a small squee.

"Can you imagine all the crusading we could in a castle?!" Applebloom said excitedly.

Applejack bit her lip. Unfortunately she could imagine, very clearly. "Uh, Applebloom?" The filly stopped her prancing around the room and turned to her sister. "Ah'd like you to promise me that you and your friends won't cause too much trouble for Twilight. She's going through a couple problems right now and Ah don't want her to have to worry 'bout yer crusading. Kay? Do we have a deal?"

"Mmhmm." Applebloom nodded reluctantly after a pause, slightly put off as that meant that their crusading would be a little limited. But she hadn't broken a promise to her sister yet.

Applejack tousled the filly's mane. "Alrighty then. Now go finish packing."

\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\

Once they finished packing, the two sisters and one dog, set out for town in the warm light of the sunset. By the time they reached Ponyville, the sun had almost sunk beyond the horizon and the darkness of night was creeping in. Halfway through town they met up with Rarity, Sweetie Belle and Opalescence. As the two fillies greeted, Rarity and Applejack exchanged their own greetings.

"Hello Applejack." Rarity greeted as the group feel in step with each other. "Thank you again for inviting us, though I wish it hadn't been on such short notice."

"Yeah well, it was kind of impromptu. Sorry if it was an inconvenience."

"I'll survive. Though I must ask, what prompted it?"

"Twilight's been having terrible nightmares."

"Oh my."

Applejack nodded. "Ah offered to stay overnight, then Rainbow Dash suggested we all have a slumber party. Then we decided to invite the girls and the pets and there you have it."

"Hmm. I had begun to wonder why I wasn't seeing her around. I hope she's alright."

"Ah popped in to check before going home and getting ready and she seemed like she was doing fine. Spike was well rested and preparing snacks. Twilight had sent her letter to Luna and straightened up the library. And according to Spike, she was showering when Ah popped in so Ah didn't actually see her. But Ah'm confident she's okay."

"Why would she need to send a letter to Princess Luna?"

"A bit long and hard to explain. Oh look! Here we are!"

The small group stopped in front of the castle already there was Pinkie Pie and Gummy, Fluttershy and Angel, Rainbow Dash, Tank and Scootaloo. The first to notice their arrival was Scootaloo. Immediately her eyes widened and she rushed to greet her friends and fellow crusaders.

"Finally!" Rainbow Dash complained exasperatedly. "You two are slower than Fluttershy."

"Not every pony can go as fast as you can dear." Rarity pointed out, the tone in her voice bearing no edge.

"Fair point." Rainbow Dash conceded.

"ARE WE READY TO PAAAAARTAY!?" Pinkie Pie exclaimed.

"Pinkie Pie, I told you that you're going to have to tone it down a little." Rainbow said.

"Oh. Sorry." She then whispered, "Are we ready to party?"

"I think we're ready." Fluttershy said softly.

"Well alright then." Applejack said and began knocking.

On the third knock, the door was opened by Twilight. She didn't look as bedraggled as she had earlier that day. Her coat, mane and tail had been brushed and she still smelled like soap, but she still drooped and the tired look in her eyes persisted.

"You weren't kidding when you said she was having nightmares." Rarity said softly to Applejack.

"She looks better than she did earlier." Applejack replied just as softly. Rarity's eyes widened.

"Hey girls." Twilight greeted with no knowledge of the brief conversation. "Please come on in."

Upon entering, the three fillies gasped in awe at the sight of the castle.

"Whoa." Applebloom said breathlessly as the huge entryway took her breath away.

"Do you really live here?!" Scootaloo asked, her wings fluttering in excitement.

"Yep." At her affirmation, the three fillies squealed and bolted off to explore, nearly trampling Spike as they exited.

With the help of Twilight's magic, he was quickly able to regain balance. "Whoa. Looks like those three have already had their daily dose of sugar."

The mares in the room chuckled at his joke.

/

Applebloom, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle stared upwards at the huge thing in front of them. After they'd explored every nook and cranny of the huge castle from top to bottom, the three now themselves in the kitchen. On the the tables were platters of snacks that Spike had laid out for their sisters and friends.

After their whirlwind tour of the upstairs, the Cutiemark Crusaders trotted downstairs just in time to overhear Twilight telling her friends about her woes. When Twilight broke down crying, the three fillies suddenly felt like they had intruded on something private and quickly walked down the nearest flight of stairs they saw. It was a short flight that ended in the kitchen where they were staring up at the biggest oven any of them had ever seen.

"Whoa. How many ponies do you think that thing could feed?" Scootaloo finally said in quiet awe.

"Ah reckon it could feed an armada." Applebloom answered. "But that's beside the point. Didn't you hear what Twilight said?" Two heads bobbed in response. "Twilight's a great friend. One of the best. Ah just can't help but feel like doing something special for her."

"Like what?" Scootaloo asked.

"We could help clean." Sweetie Belle suggested. Applebloom shook her head.

"Twilight keeps things as tidy as a pin. Ain't nothing to clean up."

"Well what about the kitchen?" Scootaloo then gestured to the snacks laid out on the table. "Nobody could make snacks like these without making some small mess."

Applebloom gave Scootaloo a deadpan look and gestured at the rest of the spotless kitchen. "Spike cleaned up after himself. Not one speck of dust anywhere."

"Hmm." Scootaloo hummed as she tapped her chin. Her eye then caught the sight of the massive oven they were admiring earlier and a grin spread across her muzzle.

"Not everywhere." She said with a smile.

/

"Ah don't know girls." Applebloom said uneasily as Scootaloo pulled the metal oven door open with a scrape. "Ah promised Applejack that we wouldn't give Twilight too much trouble since she's having a hard time. Besides, don't we need special equipment?"

"We aren't giving Twilight any trouble at all Applebloom." Scootaloo said. "If anything, we're providing her a service. This chimney looks like it could really use a clean. Also there are plenty of dish towels I think will work just as well."

Applebloom smiled at her reasoning and let Sweetie Belle at Scootaloo help her up.

"And besides." Sweetie Belle added with a cheerful voice. "What if we earned our cutiemarks?"

The three fillies smiled.

"CUTIEMARK CRUSADERS CHIMNEY SWEEPS!"

/

Once Twilight was able to quench her tears, Spike figured it was an appropriate time to bring out some snacks and so went to the kitchen to grab them. As Spike was reaching for a plate of mini sandwiches, he paused as he noticed some things were different from when he was here a few minutes ago. Several of his dish towels were missing and the oven door was wide open.

'_I thought I closed this?'_ He thought as he approached the oven. As he drew closer he noticed slightly echoey voices coming from the huge item.

Pulling himself up, he poked his head in and strained his ear to listen.

"Ow! Your jabbing your hoof into my side."

"Sorry! You know, despite how big it is, there's surprisingly not a lot of space."

"Uh oh. Could one of you pass me a towel. Mine tore again."

"I would if I could move."

"I can't move either."

"Ah can only move my foreleg a little."

From that conversation, Spike figured out two things. One, he was down who knows how many dishtowels. And two, the Cutiemark Crusaders were stuck up the oven chimney.

/

After they discovered their predicament and began to panic, Spike yelled up whatever comforts he could before going to get the others. Needless to say, they reacted immediately. Three sticks of butter and one and a half hour worth of gently turning and wriggling, three dirty and disheveled looking fillies sat in a row in front of the six mares.

After Rarity, Applejack and Rainbow Dash scolded the three adventurers, they then gave the fillies hugs before taking them to the bathroom upstairs for a good wash, leaving Spike grumbling about the soot mess he had to mop up. Once the fillies were clean and wrapped in towels, Twilight approached them.

"What in the name of Celestia made you think it was a good idea to climb up a chimney?" She asked in a gentle voice with a slight edge.

"Well, we heard about what you been going through and we figured we could help." Applebloom started.

"We thought it would make you happy if your house was clean like with Rarity. But your house is already neat as a pin." Sweetie Belle continued the story.

"Then I had the idea that if we cleaned your chimney you'd feel better since it looked like it could use a clean. So we borrowed some of Spike's dish towels and climb up the chimney. We didn't count on getting stuck." Scootaloo finished the narrative. "We're sorry for making you worry and causing trouble." Scootaloo bowed her head as she apologized

"Yeah. Real sorry." Applebloom also apologized.

"So sorry." Sweetie Belle finished with her own bow.

Twilight stared at the three and smiled. "You are forgiven." She told the three fillies who looked back up at her. "You had your best intentions at heart. Just promise me you won't be climbing up anymore ovens or chimneys."

"We promise." All three said simultaneously. Twilight nodded.

"Now if you still want to help clean, there's a small ash mess that Spike can't clean on his own. Think you can handle it?"

"Yes ma'am!" They said simultaneously and zipped out from under their towels in an instant leaving Applejack looking very concerned.

"Don't worry." Twilight assured the earth pony. "Spike's with them this time. I'm sure nothing will happen."

/

True to Twilight's prediction, nothing did happen. Aside from a small water fight that broke out between Scootaloo and Applebloom that left the two covered in soapy water and giggling. The rest of the evening went off without a hitch. They enjoyed playing games, telling spooky stories and enjoying Spike's snacks. The night wore on and soon it was decided that it was getting late. After an impromptu pillow fight, the Cutiemark Crusaders found themselves barely able to keep their eyes open. Before long, every pony found themselves collapsed in their sleeping bags in Twilight's room. All except Applejack.

Applejack turned to the larger bed in the room. The bed where Twilight lay wide awake. Carefully picking across the other sleeping forms, she made her way all the way to the side of the bed.

"Ya need ta sleep sugarcube." She told Twilight. "Ya need your rest."

Twilight nodded. "I know. But I just can't bring myself to sleep. I'm too scared." Applejack nodded.

"Would you feel better if Ah sang you a lullaby?" Twilight looked at her curiously. "Ah know a couple or so lullabies Ah used to sing ta Applebloom when she was just a foal."

"Okay." At Twilight's word, Applejack began to sing. It was a soft melody that spoke of the peace of the night and being warm and safe, wrapped in mother's arms. Gradually, Twilight's eyes began to close as she brought the soft song with her into her dreams.

/

Twilight felt like curling in on herself as she felt the all too familiar writhing blackness press around her. So thick, dark and bloodthirsty it made her feel like throwing up. And then the voice in the distance.

"Help me. Please, some pony help me." The weak and wavering voice called out.

"Hello? Is some pony out there?" Twilight called.

"Please help me."

Twilight trembled, both from fear and self loathing at her own uselessness. Right now she wanted to gallop towards the source of that voice and comfort them. But her own fear was so great, her body felt numb. Trapped in darkness and useless. Just when she began to feel like there was nothing she could do, she heard it.

Applejack's voice singing a new lullaby. About not being afraid because the sun would return. Yes the sun will return to drive the darkness away. And until then, my friends are there to help me through it. As Twilight pushed herself to her hooves, she felt the shadows pull back a little. She cracked a grin at that and galloped towards the faint voice.

Just when she began to think she was going the wrong way, her hoof hit a form in the dark. It was no surprise she almost missed the mare as her coat was charcoal gray, almost black. Her mane and tail was white with a marbleization of various shades of purple, and was spiked up before draping down in a style similar to Applejack's ponytail only thicker and tied off with something that looked like a very large bead. Her cutiemark was two light purple flowers with a white musical note surrounded by tiny white stars.

The earth pony mare was curled into a tight ball, her forelegs wrapped around her head making it impossible to see her face and the weeping sound was clearly coming from her. As she approached the curled form, Twilight's hoof hit something small and hollow. She looked down in time to see something the shape and size of a largish potato skid away from her touch. The item was made of some form of glass with a sort of clear but sturdy look. It was white and covered in a mix of marbleized purples with holes punched in it and what looked to be a mouthpiece on one end, attached to a long red rope like string around the mare's neck.

Deciding to ignore the strange item, Twilight turned to the mare and placed a hoof on her side. Immediately the mare flinched away from the contact, curling into a tighter ball, her body rigid.

"Don't be scared." Twilight immediately said as she settled beside the pony and laid her wing across the mare. "I'm here to help."

"Help me?" Came the soft answer as she slowly uncurled.

"Of course." Twilight answered as she lifted her wing. "How can I help you?"

"Help me? Help me?!" As she spoke, the pony uncurled completely and stared directly at Twilight, giving the alicorn a clear view of her face.

The left side was normal, with a wide violet and crystal blue eye wet with tears. The right side, eye included however looked like it had melted away into the darkness with but a few wisps where it had been. At the sudden offputting sight, Twilight leaned away from her. In response, the mare grasped her and leaned forward, her left eye filled with fear and anguish.

"Help me, please. Help me." She pleaded in a trembling voice.

Before Twilight could give an answer, she felt a hard jerk that yanked her to her hooves. Immediately, she went to wrap her forelegs around the mare, only for her to dissolve at her touch. Still shocked, she felt the jerk again only much harder, yanking her up and off her hooves. Later she would describe the sensation as 'it was as though I was on one end of a rope attached to Rainbow Dash as she flew upwards at high speed.'

As she ascended, she felt as though she left the bloodthirsty darkness behind, trading it for regular darkness that elicited no fear in her. Then she spotted a hole of light fast approaching, growing brighter and brighter till she found herself in almost blinding light. Her eyes quickly adjusted and she found herself staring up at the Tree of Harmony. Then she woke up with a start.

\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\

"The Tree? Are you absolutely certain it was the Tree of Harmony?" Rarity finally asked before delicately placing a forkful of applecakes (apple pancake) in her mouth.

"Positive. There was no doubt it was the Tree. But what I'm more concerned about is the pony I saw." Twilight paused thinking back on the mare, the expression on her face still vivid in her mind. "She looked like she was in so much pain. I want to know why and if I can help her."

"Ah agree." Applejack said as she brought over the last batch of applecakes and settled down to have a couple. "But how do we find this pony? Ah haven't met any pony that fits your description. What about you?" The last question was directed at Pinkie Pie who shook her head.

"Me neither. And you know me. I know every pony."

"I would guess that the Tree is somehow involved." Twilight pointed out.

"So what? How are we supposed to start a dialogue with a tree?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"We could at least check it out. We never really know what might happen."

"Well then, let's go investigate." Applejack said heartily. Then a rumbling could be heard. "But first let's eat some breakfast."

Every pony laughed and the mood instantly became lighthearted. Nopony noticed as three fillies and a dragon snuck out of the castle.

/

"Remind me why I'm here again." Spike asked as they walked through the Everfree forest.

"Cause you know where the Tree of Harmony is. We don't." Scootaloo answered the dragon's question.

"And why are we going there?" Spike demanded. The little dragon was a little peeved as the three fillies had dragged him away from his plate of applcakes and out the door before he even had a chance to take one bite.

"Ta help Twilight of course." Applebloom answered this time. "Cutiemark Crusaders Chimney Sweeps may not have worked out as well as we hoped, but we can still help out."

"Plus, I've never really gotten the chance to see the Everfree forest." Sweetie Belle said a little awestruck as she stared up at the canopy above her completely missing the crumbling cliff she was walking on.

"Ah've gone 'bout as far as Zakora's hut but no further." Applebloom added as she walked past a lunging plant which completely missed her and ended up getting eaten by a larger plant.

"It doesn't look too bad." Scootaloo said as she unknowingly skirted a pack of sleeping Timber Wolves.

"Yeah. Ah don't see what mah sister makes such a fuss about. Seems like a rather nice old forest." Applebloom commented, unaware of the cragadile that just took a snap at her heels after she walked across it's snout.

"Hey look!" Sweetie Belle called as she pointed at the crumbling towers that poked above the trees. "That must be the Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters!"

"That means we're getting close." Scootaloo said excitedly and the three fillies ran towards the crumbling towers leaving Spike trying to settle his heart before he had a heart attack.

"Geez. These girls aren't good for my heart." He sighed as he carefully followed the girls.

The little dragon finally caught up with the energetic fillies at the bottom of the stairs leading down into the small canyon where the tree was. The Cutiemark Crusaders stood a few feet away staring at the tree in awe.

"That is the most beautiful tree Ah ever seen." Applebloom finally said.

"Never seen anything like it." Sweetie Belle agreed with a nod.

"Well girls, let's start looking for anything different." Scootaloo said briskly as she approached the tree.

"Like what?" Applebloom asked. "We've never been here before. How would we know what's normal and what's not?"

"And that's why we have Spike." Scootaloo explained. "He's been here before. If there's anything different, I'm sure he'd know."

Spike sighed. "Why me?" He asked himself. "Out of all the dragons in all of Equestria, why me?"

Then next few minutes were filled with the three fillies running around the area asking if this was normal or not. It got old very fast. Ten minutes later there was a sudden shout from the top of the stairs.

"Applebloom!?" Spike turned at the sound of Applejack's voice. Applejack was running ahead of the others with Rarity and Rainbow Dash hot on her tail.

"Sweetie Belle!" Rarity exclaimed as she skidded to a stop in front of her sister and began gentling fussing over the filly, a stark contrast to Applejack who practically tackled her sister. "What on earth are you girls doing here?!"

"Well after that whole fiasco with the chimney we thought we could still help out." Sweetie Belle explained. "Besides I've never seen the Tree of Harmony before. You never told me it was so gorgeous."

Rarity sighed and smiled at her sister, having finished her once over and was very relieved to find not a scratch on her sister.

"You're right, it is a very lovely tree." Rarity admitted. "But that still doesn't excuse the fact that you snuck out here without telling us."

"But we had Spike with us."

Twilight raised an eyebrow at the little dragon, silently asked why he was here. Spike then held his claws up in defense.

"Don't look at me. This was their idea. I was basically dragon napped."

"He's right." Scootaloo confirmed. "We did drag him out the door..." A grumbling groan interrupted the filly. "...without his breakfast." She finished bashfully.

Twilight sighed a little amusedly and lifted the little dragon onto her back. "We'll just have to come back later." She announced. "First let's make sure the girls get home safely."

As Twilight started to trot towards the stairs she brought her forehoof down and suddenly a line of light spread from the point of impact and across the area causing the tree to shine brightly before everything shifted back to normal. At the same time a sound like a reverberating bell filled the area before fading. Nopony moved.

For a time, every pony stood frozen in shock as the tried to comprehend what had just happened. Fluttershy doing a very good impression of a statue. Pinkie Pie was the first to move as she immediately began stomping her hooves then bouncing around in an effort to duplicate the same thing. Applejack moved towards Twilight, who still stood stock still, now facing the tree.

"Uh, Twi? What the hay was that?"

Twilight didn't answer as she was too focused on the new sound she'd heard.

"Applejack, can you hear that?" Twilight said in a quiet voice.

Applejack and the others paused and strained their ears to hear what Twilight had heard. It wasn't long before they heard it too. A low rumbling sound that was growing louder and louder. Like something was coming closer and closer. It wasn't long before the ponies didn't need to strain their ears to hear it since the rumbling now filled the air. And Twilight now knew where it was coming from.

"Everypony get back!" She shouted. A split second later a huge crack appeared in front of the Tree of Harmony forcing the ponies to scramble backwards.

The crack grew wider and wider, becoming a hole, as the approaching rumble grew. As soon as the hole was wide enough something huge rushed out of the hole with a whoosh and cloud of dust and dirt. And just like that, everything fell silent. Once the dust settled they were able to get a good look at what was in front of them.

There in front of the tree was what could only be described as a massive crystal orb. The orb was white and shone with a rainbow of colors that shifted in the light. Curled around the orb and holding it aloft was a long silvery white root which snaked out of the hole. After staring at it for a time the six ponies moved to examine it. Applejack set her sister down with her friends and the little dragon.

"You four stay right here." She instructed firmly.

"But..."

"Right. Here." Applejack reasserted, interrupting what the little filly might've said and staring firmly into her eyes.

"Fine." Applebloom finally agreed reluctantly and Applejack's eyes softened with relief before she trotted over to join the others.

"What is this anyways?" Rainbow asked as she hovered close to the top of the orb. "Another quest like the box?"

"Maybe." Twilight said as she trotted the circumference of the huge thing. "But something tells me that this is something different."

"Well, whatever it is, this has to be the most glamorous crystal I've ever seen." Rarity said in an admiring tone.

"And shiny too." Pinkie Pie said brightly as she leaned in close.

"Don't touch it." Twilight warned sharply. "Something tells me that there's much more to this thing that gives me the chills. Till I can figure out more about this thing, no one is to touch it."

Meanwhile as they examined the crystal, the CMC and Spike sat far off watching. Scootaloo was beginning to get bored and Applebloom was a little disgruntled that she didn't get to look up close. Spike's stomach was growling and he was beginning to wonder if any of the surrounding plants were edible. Sweetie Belle however was completely transfixed on the huge orb. Somewhere directly in the core of the crystal she could see a shadow.

Subconsciously she moved towards the crystal, unnoticed by the other ponies as she fixed her eyes on that shadow. As she drew closer and closer, the shadow began to take on a vague form. Soon she found herself almost directly underneath the orb. From here she could see that the shadow took on the form of a pony on their hind legs, they're forelegs kicking at the air and they're muzzle pointing upwards. Like they'd been frozen in an instant.

Reaching up to touch the pony, Sweetie Belle's hoof pressed up against the surface of the orb. It was smooth and warm to the touch, like the body heat of a pony. Like it was alive. Suddenly the warmth drained, leaving the surface cold and snuffing out the orb's light. That was when every pony noticed Sweetie Belle.

"SWEETIE BELLE!" Rarity shrieked in alarm and tackled her little sister away from the orb, Twilight on her heels. Applejack dove for the rest of the younger ones and everypony else tensed in anticipation. Of what, no one knew.

"Sweetie Belle, what in the name of Celestia were you doing!?" Rarity asked, Twilight also waiting for an answer.

"There was a shadow." Sweetie explained. "I wanted to know what it was so I got closer."

"What kind of shadow?" Twilight asked. Before Sweetie could answer however, a loud crack rent the air apart and the ponies braced themselves as the crack spread from where Sweetie Belle's hoof had touched. As the cracks grew and branched out, the whole world seemed to hold it's breath. Then, chunks of crystal began sloughing off. As the orb shrank, the shadow became more and more prominent, the pony's muzzle pointed upwards and wide open like she'd been frozen mid cry.

Soon the orb was reduced to a smaller chunk of crystal that slipped from the grasp of the root. The chunk shattered, shards of crystal spreading out across the area. And directly in the center lay the unmoving form of an earth pony mare. As Twilight picked her way forward, she immediately recognized the mare as the one from her dream. Her charcoal almost black coat. Her strange and wild mane. Her left eye was a swirl of crystalline blue and violet while the right was a striking red.

Twilight blinked and it registered that the mare's eyes were open. Heavy lidded, but open and staring right up at her. Twilight crouched down and stared directly into tired, relieved mismatched eyes. The mare smiled up at her and softly whispered. "You came." Then her eyes rolled back and she passed out.

/

Applejack gently closed the door to the spare room and trotted down to gather round the table. The CMC had already run to their clubhouse while Spike lay on the couch with a contented smile and a full stomach. The others were sitting around the table quietly. Applejack sat in her spot at the table and everything was quiet for time.

"So, what do you think Twi?" Applejack finally asked.

"She's definitely the pony I saw in my dreams last night." Twilight said. "But I don't understand any of this. Why were we supposed to find her? And for what purpose?"

"For that matter, how did she get there?" Rarity continued the train of thought. "And where did she come from?"

"And perhaps more importantly, what do we do now?" Everything fell silent once more at Fluttershy's question.

"In my dream, when I met her, she was pleading with me to help her." Twilight finally said. "She was crying, and looked so scared and I wanted to help her." A pause. "I still want to help her. I'm not sure how I can help, or what to do, but I still want to do whatever I can to help."

"Well alrighty then." Applejack said as she brought her forehooves hard on the table. "Ah don't see why we can't pitch in either."

"Well, you can certainly count me in." Rainbow Dash agreed.

"Well I certainly wouldn't mind helping out." Rarity said with a flip of her mane.

"I'll do my best." Fluttershy said softly.

Twilight turned to Pinkie Pie, only to find a pink pony shaped cloud that was quickly dispersing. Down the hall the creak of the front door could be heard.

"I think that means she's in." Rainbow Dash guessed as they all knew the reason for her sudden disappearance.

/

The rest of the day was uneventful. After reaching their agreement, the six friends went on with their business of the day. Twilight immediately went to work studying what she could. Applejack would pause once in a while to peek in on her guest. That night was blissfully dreamless for Twilight. The next morning started out like any other morning for Applejack. She awoke early and after checking her mystery guest, set out for the morning chores.

As she worked in the fields, the mystery mare twitched and shifted in bed. She stirred and a pair of mismatched eyes cracked open. The mare stared at the wall for a moment then looked up at the ceiling, confusion evident on her face. She pushed herself upwards and winced slightly.

/

After Applejack finished replacing some equipment in the barn, she turned and almost jumped out of her skin at the sudden appearance of a blue and purple eye with a bright red eye. There right in front of her studying her curiously was the strange pony from yesterday.

"Excuse me, but could you tell me where I am?"

/

The mane six stared as their mysterious new friend wolfed down her breakfast. After her scare in the barn, Applejack had herded the mare back into the house shortly before the other girls arrived to check in. Applejack of course prepared a sort late breakfast for everyone and here they were. The mare paused and turned to them.

"I'm sorry about that." She said and she wiped her mouth. "I don't know why, but for some reason I feel really ravenous."

"That's alright sugarcube." Applejack assured her. "You just fill on up. I'm Applejack by the way."

The mare's eyes widened. "I knew I'd forgotten something! So rude of me to sit here eating and not introduce myself. My name's Violet Melody. But you can call me just Violet or just Melody."

"Well it's very nice to meet you Violet. My name is Twilight Sparkle. And these are my friends, Rarity, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie."

"Nice to meet you all!" Violet said brightly. As she continued to eat, the six glance at each other then turned and huddled.

"I don't know darling." Rarity said unsure. "I don't see anything wrong with her."

Twilight glanced at Violet and turned back. "It's faint and I'm not sure I can explain, but something feels a little off."

"Why not ask her about the crystal?" Applejack suggested. "She was in it, so she might know something."

"Excellent idea Applejack." Twilight said and they turned back just as Violet finished polishing off her meal. "Um, excuse me but we'd like to ask what you know about a giant crystal orb."

Violet cocked her head. "Well that's an odd question. What brought it up?"

"We found you inside a huge crystal orb." Rainbow Dash answered. Violet's face bore a confused expression.

"That doesn't make any sense. My last clear memory was of going into the forest to collect herbs. After that..." She trailed off and had a look of immense concentration like she was trying to remember something. Then a wince and she shook her head. "It's all a tangled blur after."

"Don't force it sugar cube. It'll come when it's ready." Applejack said. "Till then you can stick around."

"Thanks." Violet smiled thankfully then a look of realization crossed her face. "I should go home home. My friends and family must be worried sick."

"Don't worry." Twilight assured. "I'm sure we can find out where you live and get you there."

Violet's eyes lit up. "Oh thank you again! You're all too kind."

"Please. Its no problem for a friend. Where do you live anyways?"

"We called the land where we lived Equidae."

/0 AUTHORS_ NOTE _0/

**Finally done with the first chapter. So so so sorry it took so long to post. The first chapter was the hardest to figure out. So anyways, introducing Violet Melody. If you haven't guessed, this story is about her and I hope you all enjoy.**


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